Provincial Nominee Program (PNP)

Most provinces and territories in Canada can nominate immigrants through the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP).

These immigrants must have the education, skills and work experience to contribute to the economy of that province or
territory, and must want to live there.

Each province and territory has its own streams (immigration programs that target certain groups) and criteria for
their PNP. The province of Quebec does not have a PNP.

If you are nominated under a non-Express Entry stream:

you will have to apply through the paper-based process, and
if the province or territory finds you eligible and nominates you, you will send an application to Citizenship and
Immigration Canada (CIC).
If you are nominated under a province or territorys Express Entry stream, you must:
meet their requirements, and
meet the minimum criteria for Express Entry

If you applied through the paper-based process

The Centralized Intake Office (CIO) will contact you when it confirms your application is complete. You will be told what
you need to do and what will happen next.
If your application is not complete, we will reject it and will refund your processing fees.

If you applied through Express Entry

When you submit your application, you will get a letter called Acknowledgment of receipt - Application for permanent
residence in your account confirming that your application was sent to CIC.
We will contact you again through your MyCIC account when we have confirmed that your application is complete. If
your application is not complete, we will reject it and will refund your processing fees.

Your application will be delayed if:

there are criminal or security problems or we need to do more background checks,
your family situation is not clearreasons could include a divorce or an adoption that is not yet complete or
child custody issues that have not been resolved, or
a visa office has to contact other CIC offices in Canada or abroad to verify the information you gave.
To avoid delays:
let CIC know if there are changes to your personal information (see below), and
avoid contacting us more than once about the same issue.

Medical exams and police certificates:

If you applied through Express Entry, you had to complete your medical exam and submit copies of your police
certificates to CIC when you applied.
If you applied through the paper-based process, you will be told when to submit these to CIC.

To apply for the PNP, you must:

apply to a province or territory for a nomination,
 be nominated by that province or territory, then
apply to CIC to become a permanent resident.

Medical exams
You must have a medical exam before you come to Canada. Your family members must also have one, even if they are
not coming with you.
We will not accept your application if your health:
is a danger to Canadas public health or safety, or
would cause too much demand on health or social services in Canada.
We will send you a letter to tell you how to get the medical exam after we send your application to the visa office.

Police certificates
If you have a criminal record, you may not be allowed to enter Canada. People who pose a risk to Canadas security are
also not allowed to come to Canada.
You will need to get police certificates for you and each of your family members who are over 18. You must get one from
each country or territory (except Canada) where you have lived for six or more months in a row since the age of 18.
In some countries, it can take a long time to get police certificates, so find out what you need to do to get them early.

You might need to apply using the paper-based process, or the online process through Express Entry.
In both cases, you must apply in two stages:
1. First, you must decide where you want to live in Canada and apply to that province or territory for a nomination.
They will review your application based on:
o their immigration needs,
o if you really plan to live there, and,
o for Express Entry onlyif you meet the minimum criteria of at least one of the federal immigration
programs covered by Express Entry.
Note: If you are creating an Express Entry profile, you will be asked which provinces and territories you are interested in.
They may contact you and ask you to submit a PNP application so they can nominate you. If you already have a
nomination, you must show this in your profile.
The criteria by province and territory vary and can change without notice. To be nominated, you must follow the
instructions on their website and contact them directly.
2. After a province or territory nominates you, you must apply to Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) for
permanent residence. CIC will assess your application based on Canadian immigration law.
o If your nomination is through Express Entry, you must be invited to apply by CIC before you can submit
an electronic application for permanent residence.
As part of the process, you will have to pass a medical exam and get a police check (certificate). All immigrants must
have these checks, no matter where they plan to live in Canada.
Which process you will use
1- Electronic Process:
In the online Express Entry process, there are two ways to apply:
First
You contact the province or territory and apply for a nomination under an Express Entry stream
If the province or territory agrees to nominate you, you create an Express Entry profile (or update your profile if
you already have one) and show you have been nominated

Second
You create an Express Entry profile and show the provinces and territories you are interested in
If a province or territory sends you a notification of interest to your MyCIC account, you contact them
directly
You apply to their Express Entry stream

In both cases:
You must meet the eligibility requirements of the province or territory, and
You must submit an Express Entry profile and show that you meet the minimum criteria for Express Entry,
including being eligible for one of the immigration programs it covers
If you are invited to apply, you submit an electronic application to CIC
We expect to process most Express Entry applications in 6 months or less.

2- Paper-Based Process
You apply to the province or territory for nomination under a non-Express Entry stream
You need to meet the eligibility requirements of the province that nominates you
Once you have been nominated, you submit a paper application for permanent residence to CIC
Application processing times are longer than through Express Entry
Find out more about how to apply through the paper-based process.

Contact the province or territory

To be nominated by a province or territory, you must follow the instructions on their website and contact them directly:
Alberta
British Columbia
Manitoba
New Brunswick
Newfoundland and Labrador
Northwest Territories
Nova Scotia
Ontario
Prince Edward Island
Saskatchewan
Yukon